A Twist of Fate
by The Jasper Fox
Summary: Three months have past since our kung fu warriors have defeated Lord Shen and his powerful weapons but now that two of the legendary masters have realized their ture feelings for one another, will love blossom. Will they confess there feelings, if so will their feelings be returned by the other? How will the rest of the Five and especially Shifu react to their relationship? Plz R
1. Melody of a lonely Maiden

**The idea for this fic just came to me, one day after I had heard this song for the first time again in many years so I hope you enjoy reading it. This is my first widely published fan fiction. Please R&R **

**Disclaimer; I don't own Kung Fu Panda or any of it characters, nor do I own the song those rights belong to Brian McKinght and his record label. **

**P.S; The only slight change that I made to the song lyrics, is that I changed the word girl in the chours to boy, so that it would better fit Master Tigress as the singer. Also this fic is set after the events of KFP 2. **

**Chapter One**

***** Melody of a lonely Maiden*** **

It was a pleasant summer night and a single kung fu warrior sat mediating under the blossom covered branches of the Peach tree of Heavenly Wisdom attempting to calm her mind. Three months had past since Po had defeated the crazed peacock Lord Shen and the powerful weapons that he had created with the Dragon Warrior, Furious Five and Grand Master Shifu returning to the Valley of Peace hero's once more and the saviors of China yet again. But in actuality very few, apart form the warriors themselves and Master's Ox, Croc and Shifu, knew just how close the legendary fighters had come losing there final showdown with the disillusioned former crown prince and if it had not been for the Dragon Warriors inner peace technique, than the battle could of had a much different and more dire conclusion then it had. Ever since there return from Gongmen City, attacks by the local croc bandits on villages within the Valley and on its outskirts had been virtually non-existent and even though the resident kung fu masters og the Jade Palace welcomed the lack of crime, one master in particular would have preferred the distraction from Shifu's constant training or the encouraged studying of Oogway's thousand scrolls of kung-fu, to keep her thoughts from drifting to certain kind-hearted and lovable panda. This master was none other than, Master Tigress, the master of tiger style kung fu and south China tiger, had trained all her life to never show emotions of any kind because she had been raised to see them as a mark of weakness by Shifu and had hardened her heart forever locking them away or so she believed but then he came it her life and started to slowly chip away at the defenses, that she had encapsulated her heart in.

Admittedly the feline had no idea when Po's kind-hearted nature had begun to work its magic on her and soften her hardened heart but it became all to frighteningly real, just how much she had come to care for him when she thought the blast that had launched said panda out the wall of the cannon factory and far over the distant horizon had killed him. Visibly shuddering as the memory of that horrifying moment pushed to the forefront of her mind, Tigress could still smell the giant panda's singed fur as the cannon blast launched Po by her outstretched paw in a sparkling ball of bright orange flame and black and white fur. Taking a deep breath in and exhaling it out in an attempt to quell her mind, the female warrior tried to focus so that she could enter a meditative state but ever increasing romantic thoughts of her being tenderly embraced in the arms of the dragon warrior and blissfully enjoy every moment of it had prevented her from doing so. It was the first time in her entire life that the tiger had ever felt the way she did around the panda, when ever he was close by she felt all warm and fuzzy on the inside and she always found it easier to smile around him; it was as if she was a completely different person around him, than she was around the rest of the Five. Needing to vent her emotions since mediation was resolving the issue, the feline stood up from where she sat lotus style under the petal covered branches and after briefly stretching walked over to the cliffs edge. Casting her gaze over the quiet valley of sleeping residents below, Master Tigress opened her mouth and began to sing, a song that perfectly reflected how she felt in the depths of her heart about the sweet and gentle Dragon Warrior.

_It's undeniable... that we should be together..._

_It's unbelievable how I used to say that I'd fall never_

_The basis is need to know, if you don't know just how I feel,_

_Then let me show you now that I'm for real..._

_If all things in time, time will reveal..._

_Yeah..._

_One... you're like a dream come true..._

_Two... just wanna be with you..._

_Three... boy it's plain to see... that your the only one for me..._

_Four... repeat steps one through three..._

_Five... make you fall in love with me..._

_If ever I believe my work is done... then I start Back at One (yeah) _

Deeply breathing in and exhaling a breath before singing the next verse, Tigress felt tears begin to pool in the corners of her amber and yellow eyes as the gut-wrenching pain of watching as her sweet panda was engulfed by the sparkling orange flame of Lord Shen's firework powered cannon ball impacted his make shift shield and being absolutely powerless to stop it even if she could. At that horrifying moment in time, the feline felt as if her very heart had been ripped, still beating from her chest and casually tossed aside, all her drive and determination to keep fighting the peacock from conquering all of China and destroying kung fu in the process completely gone. Tears freely flowed down the tiger's cheeks as she resumed singing.

_So Incredible... the way things work themselves out..._

_And all emotional, once you know what it's all about babe..._

_And undesirable... for us to be apart..._

_Never would of made it very far..._

_Cause you know that you've got the keys to my heart_

_Cause..._

_One... you're like a dream come true_

_Two... just wanna be with you_

_Three...boy it's plain to see... that your the only one for me_

_Four.. .repeat steps one through three_

_Five... make you fall in love with me_

_If ever I believe my work is done... then I start Back at One..._

_**Meanwhile back in the student barracks of the Jade Palace; **_

Po had been unable to sleep, kept awake by ever increasing romantic thoughts of him taking a certain feline kung fu warrior gently in his arms and giving the tiger a reason to purr. Long before he was proclaimed to be the Dragon Warrior by the ancient and wise Master Oogway, the kung fu loving panda was a huge fan of the Furious Five especially Master Tigress in particular. As far as he was concerned the female tiger was just as beautiful as she was deadly skilled at kung fu and what had begun as an innocent crush, had grown in to much deeper feelings since being named the Dragon Warrior and defeating Tai Lung. However the giant panda was unsure if it was even possible for a hardened warrior such as herself to even to feel the same way that he felt about her for him but he did know one thing, he wouldn't be able to keep it hidden from the tiger for much longer. Throwing the thin blanket off him, the panda sat up and quietly opening his bedroom doors as to not wake the other master's, closed the doors just as quietly and avoiding the squeaking floorboards of the hallway made his was toward the kitchen for a light snack and glass of water. Hearing a heavenly voice singing somewhere off in the distance, just as he was about to enter the kitchen, a few minutes later, the Dragon Warrior forgot all about what he had come to get and went to locate the source of the beautiful singing instead.

_**Back with Tigress, at the Sacred Peach tree of Heavenly Wisdom; **_

Tears continued to roll down the master of tiger style cheeks, tears of happiness this time as she remembered how safe and warm the feline felt in his arms as Po hugged her after she had helped him out of the water following Lord Shen's defeat once and for all. The warm and fuzzy feelings she felt well up inside her chest when ever he was around especially when he had swam over to check on her, after the peacock had used his cannons to clear the entrance to Gongmen City harbor from its urban river and she had pushed him out of the way because the tiger could not bare the thought of losing her sweet panda for a second time. Closing her eyes the warrior poured all of her heart and soul in to the last verse of the song, belted it out for all the Valley of Peace to hear her lonely maiden's melody.

_Say farewell to the dark of night... I see the coming of the sun..._

_I feel like a little child... whose life has just begun..._

_You came and breathed new life_

_Into this lonely heart of mine..._

_You threw out the life line... just in the Nick of Time..._

_One... you're like a dream come true_

_Two... just wanna be with you_

_Three...boy it's plain to see... that your the only one for me... boy and..._

_Four... repeat steps one through three_

_Five... make you fall in love with me_

_If ever I believe my work is done... then I start Back at One. _

Having followed the voice back to the singer, on the rocky outcrop that the Sacred Peach tree of Heavenly Wisdom grew on, Po's eyes grew wide when he saw that it was none other than, Tigress. The panda had no idea that the feline could sing, let alone had such a beautiful voice to sing with.

"Tigress, that was amazing I didn't know that you could sing, let alone have the beautiful voice of an angel. I mean just wow, is there anything that you can't do and be prefect at it," the tiger heard a voice compliment her from really close by.

Turning on the balls of her foot paws, Tigress got in to her fighting stance but relaxed when she saw that it was just her sweet panda and smiled warmly at him. Returning the felines smile with one of his own however it was quickly replaced by an expression of concern when he noticed the moist tear streaks that dampened her cheeks. Walking toward the master of tiger style, Po embraced her in a one armed hug with his left arm while he gently wiped the last fringes of tears away from his secret lover eyes with his raised right paw. Seeing her like this caused the panda to experience pain far worse than any physical injury, could ever possibly hope to inflict upon him. Leaning in to the palm of her sweet panda's right paw as her tenderly caressed her left cheek after weeping the last of her tears away, the feline allowed a very noticeable purr to rumble from her throat as the two warriors eyes locked with one another's.

"Kitt…I mean Tigress," Po said catching himself before the affectionate pet name that he had for his secret love could slip out completely, knowing how much it agitated the tiger, "What are doing out here and at this hour too, shouldn't you be sleeping?"

"I could be asking you the same thing, Po," Tigress said giggling softly at the way her sweet panda had caught himself mid thought, "You were just about to call me, kitten, weren't you?"

"Um…yyeeess," the panda answered drawing out his answer before cringing expecting the feline to punch him for even thinking it but when it did not come relaxed his face and stared down at the tiger, "Aren't you going to punch me, for even considering it?"

"Funnily enough, Po, I am ok with that word as long as its you that's calling me it, everyone else not so much and especially not our enemies," Tigress said beginning to get lost in the depths of the panda's bright jade green eyes, "As for why I'm out here, I could not sleep and had thought that maybe some mediation would help my relax."

"So, kitten, who's the lucky guy that caused you to break out in to song?" Po asked in a slightly nervous tone, knowing that whom ever it was they were extremely lucky to have Tigress' love and sighted heavily knowing that there was very little chance, that he could ever be that lucky.

"Does this answer your question, my sweet Dragon Warrior," Tigress growled wrapping her arms around the panda's neck and lacing the fingers of both her paws together, before pulling her head away from the palm of Po's right paw.

Leaning toward one another without even realizing it, the panda and tiger slowly inched ever closer together. Tilting their heads to either side slightly as their noses touched, a few moments later, the two warriors both closed their eyes as their lips met in a gentle kiss. Purring even more loudly as they kissed, Tigress could have cared less if the two of them were completely different species, she absolutely loved the panda even with all of his faults and knew with all her heart that she had found the mate that she had secretly longed for all these years. Rubbing her cheek over Po's after they broke apart for air, five minutes later, the feline tenderly licked him upon the very same cheek before resting her head on front of the panda's chest. Wrapping his arms around Tigress' hips, a few moments later, he felt her snuggle even deeper against his chest and just knew that it meant she felt safe and protected there.

"It was me, wasn't it?" Po asked even though he already had a pretty good idea of what the felines answer was going to be, just by her actions.

"Yes, it is, my sweet panda," Tigress' slightly muffled voice answered back while she adjusted where her head lay, so that she could gaze in to the eyes of her lover with her own yellow and amber ones, "For a while now, ever since you defeated Tai Lung I guess, when ever you are around me I just feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside and find it easier to smile than I do with the rest of the five or even Shifu, for that matter. But it really become apparent to me just how much I cared about you, by how powerless I felt when I though that cannon blast had killed you. I had never felt so weak in my entire life, it did not even get my attention when Monkey looked to me for reassurance that you would have wanted us keep fighting, when it was clear we were soundly beaten."

"I wouldn't lie to you, kitten, that trip was certainly harder on the two of us, than the others," Po said lightly stroking his paws over the tiger's lower back tentatively, unsure of how she would react to the semi-intimate gesture, "You could not imagine how long that I have wanted to say these words to you, Tigress, I love you."

"I love you too, Po," Tigress said pressing her body against the panda's as she her lovers fingers slid over the back of her red silk vest and for the first time in her life, since Shifu had adopted her from Bao Gu, felt truly happy, "You know, I already have a pet name for you also."

"Really, kitten, what is it?" Po asked curious to know what it could possibly be.

"Do you promise me, that you wouldn't laugh?" Tigress asked back, feeling slightly nervous over being so intimately close with the man she dearly loved yet blissfully happy at the same time.

"I promise, kitten," Po said freely stroking his paws slowly up and down the felines back since she seemed to be enjoying it as much as he was.

"Its dumpling, my pet name for you is dumpling," Tigress said lightly nuzzling the side of his neck, "It sort of came to me one night as I was watching you, pour your heart and soul, in to the delicious meal that you were preparing for us and it just seemed fitting since you like to cook so much. You think its weird, don't you."

"Naw, I think its kind of cute that you already had a pet name for me just like the way I already had one for you," Po said resting his head on top of hers gently, "Now its getting pretty late, kitten, don't you think we should be returning to the barracks."

"Yeah we probably should, if we stay out here much longer it will be morning before we know it and god knows what the rest of the Five will think especially Mantis, not to mention Shifu," Tigress said enjoying the feeling of being in her lovers arms and never wanting to ever leave there comforting warmth again, "And just between us, I think they have suspected that there has been something romantic going on between us ever since we returned from Gongmen City when nothing has been, up until now that is. The funny thing is that I came out here because I could not sleep and now I feel like I could fall asleep right here, embraced in your strong yet gentle arms, dumpling."

"I'm feeling kind of sleepy myself, kitten, come on lets get back inside before it gets any later or we just might fall asleep right here, underneath the branches of the Peach tree of Heavenly Wisdom in our lovers embrace," Po said returning his paws to their original pace upon the felines lower back and interlocking their fingers.

"Yes, dumpling, lets," Tigress agreed with her monochrome lover yet was deeply reluctant to leave his comforting presence for any length of time but knew that if she wanted to gain Shifu's approval of their relationship then it was unavoidable, at least until the couple had his approval, "Not that I'm totally against that wonderful idea, my love, but maybe we should wait until we have my Baba's approval before giving it a try."

Lifting their heads from where they gently rested one atop of the other, the now unofficially dating warriors shared a passionate kiss. Breaking their embrace as they broke the kiss, a few moments later, the panda and tiger wrapped an arm around the others back and began to descend the stairs back toward the training hall. Carefully avoiding the squeaky floorboards in the hallway outside of the student quarters, a short time later, they tenderly kissed one last time before bidding the other goodnight. Smiling as they glanced back over their shoulder as they quietly opened the doors of their rooms, both knew in their hearts that no matter what obstacles life put in there way the couple would face it together and persevere; the first possible barrier to there blossoming relationship was Tigress' adoptive father and the Jade Palace's current Grand Master, Master Shifu. Quietly closing their adjacent facing bedroom doors behind them, a few moments later, Po and Tigress crawled back under the covers of their futons and both fell in to a deep restful sleep the moment their heads touched their pillows.

**This intailly was just only going to be a one-shot but after I reached the end of the Song-fic I decided to expand on the original idea, more chapters will follow. Please R&R All opinions welcome.**


	2. Friends and Family

**Here is the second chapter of my fic, an innocent exchange between our two warriors has some what unexpected results in store for them. Please R&R as usual I welcome all opnions. **

**Disclaimer; I do not own Kung Fu panda or any of its characters. **

**Chapter Two **

***** Friends and Family*** **

Pulling open his bedroom doors as the morning gong rang to dawn, a loving smile was briefly exchanged between the two warriors just as Shifu appeared at the other end of the hallway. Noticing the exchange between his adoptive daughter and the dragon warrior, the Grand Master faintly smiled happy that she had finally found someone whom loved her for who she was nothing more, nothing less. Dismissing his students for three hours of training before breakfast with the wave of his paw, a few moments later, Shifu raised it motioning for the tiger and panda to stop as they went to follow the others toward the training hall.

'Master, you wish to speak with us?' Po asked bowing respectfully toward the smaller red panda.

'Yes, I do, Po,' Shifu said staring the his far larger counterpart down, 'Firstly thank you for waking up on time, its about time for you to have gotten used to it, you have been living here in the Jade Palace for three years now but that's not the reason I wish to talk with both of you.'

'It isn't, Master, Tigress said nervously glancing at the giant panda that stood beside her, there was no way they could have been found out already, everyone was soundly asleep when the two had confessed there love for one another.

'No, Tigress,' Shifu said taking notice of the tigers nervous behavior as well as the slight glance at the dragon warrior as she spoke, 'Po, what are your intentions toward my daughter and do not even think about trying to play dumb because I saw the exchange between the two of you just now and have been around more than long enough to knew when something sneaky is going on.'

'In my eyes, Tigress, is the most beautiful woman in all of China and words could not even hope to begin to describe the happiness that she brings in to my life and how much she means to me,' Po said gazing at his feline lover out of the corner of his eye, after contemplating his Master's question for a few moments.

'You two both know Jade Palace rules, relationships are strictly forbidden,' Shifu said sternly his expression turning suddenly cold, deciding to have a little fun with the couple before he finally gave them his approval, 'Especially between kung fu Masters, for they have been known to disrupt with their training and make them weak.'

'But baba were are in love, surely even you can see that and I wouldn't allow you to come between us,' Tigress growled angrily, that her very own father was so against her being happy, when he should have been overjoyed that she would not become an old maid and taking hold of Po's left paw with her right intertwined their fingers before continuing her anger fueled rant, 'Even if it means banishment I would rather be happy than lonely and heart broken. Po is kind-hearted and forgiving to everyone he meets, makes me feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside when ever I am around him. Has taught me not only how to receive love but give it as well and has given me a reason to smile and purr again which you should know better than most is something that I have not had cause to do since you saved me from Bao Gu as a youngling. And most importantly as far as this tiger is concerned, I feel secure and protected in his gentle embrace. Oh, did I mention that we are in love.'

'Yes, you did, Tigress, twice,' Shifu said finding it difficult to keep up his charade in light of his adoptive daughters defense of the tiger and panda's relationship, indicating the number of times with two raised fingers of his free paw.

'Oh, I just remembered something else, baba,' Tigress interjected taking hold of her panda lovers other paw with hers prompting them to stand face to face, in front of her adoptive father, 'Despite the very dishonorable way that all of us treated him when he first arrived, especially me in particular, he has never held it against us and now I could never imagine spending the rest of my life with any other.'

'I believe that speaks more of his kind-hearted and forgiving nature, Tigress, then furthers your declaration of love for him though,' Shifu said as cracks began to show in his charade as a smirk slowly worked its way across his face, 'Now I know, that I have not always been the most attentive of fathers in raising you, Tigress, but my first concern has always been your happiness so if our dragon warrior does that for you, my precious daughter, than the two of you have my permission to date.'

'Master, unless I heard you wrong which I hope I didn't, it just sounded as though we have your approval,' Po said staring down at the red panda with a very confused expression upon his face, oblivious to the joke that Shifu was playing on the two of them.

'Of course you two have my approval, Po,' Shifu said lightly chuckling as the feline caught on to little joke he was playing on them but stopped when he saw Tigress' expression shift from angered to slightly annoyed, 'Its every fathers dream, even adoptive fathers, to see their children grow up and find someone that's makes them truly happy.'

'If you approved of our relationship, then how came you said all that stuff about relationships being forbidden?' Tigress asked, furious that her adoptive father had gotten her all riled for no reason yet was relived at the same time cause it meant she and Po could be open about their relationship without having to keep it a secret from there friends.

'Relationships are not exactly forbidden by Jade Palace rules but they are not encouraged either, however rooming together is and I expect both of you to abide by them to the letter,' Shifu said a stern edge returning to his voice, drawing both warriors attention before it took on a more gentler tone and he continued, 'Just don't allow it to effect your training, okay. Feel free to join the others in the training hall, you may tell them about your relationship at your discretion but you do not have to, if you wish not to do so. However I do insist that you tell Mr. Ping about it, I have no doubt that news of your relationship will bring a huge smile to that bill of his.'

'Thank you, baba,' growled a less annoyed, Tigress cheerfully as blissful happiness reflected in the yellows of her eyes, all the felines anger from a few minutes before completely vanished as a soft smile appeared on her muzzle.

Taking notice of her smile, Po had a feeling that she might want to hug Shifu for allowing the two warriors to continue with their relationship, so the giant panda released Tigress' paws and took a step back so that they could have there father/daughter moment. Even thought the two had just started their relationship Po already seemed to know her so well and after lightly rubbing her nose over his sweetly, the master of tiger style walked back over to where her adoptive father stood and crouching down on one knee, so that she would be on his level, pulled the red panda in to a warm hug. Caught off guard by the sudden embrace, the Grand Master thought that he knew his adopted daughter pretty well, having raised the feline since she was a youngling but apparently the dragon warrior knew her a little better he did and must have seen this was coming so that's why the giant panda had stepped back a bit, to give them some small measure of privacy. As Tigress firmly held him against her chest and a very noticeable purr rumbled from her throat, Shifu could not remember the last time that he had ever seen her so happy, perhaps when she had finally learned to control her strength through playing checkers with him or the light skip that was in her step as they neared the Jade Palace after he had first adopted the young female tiger from Bao Gu because none of the other parents would but after the events of Gongmen City, it all seemed to have happened a lifetime ago. The tiger that was currently embracing him was not the same youngling that he had brought home from Bao Gu Orphanage all those years ago, somewhere along the way she had grown in to a strong, proud warrior capable of defending the pure and innocent against those who wished to do them harm yet retained all the beauty and grace of a proper young women at the same time. Gently patting Tigress upon her forehead markings fatherly as the feline broke the hug and began to stand back on her foot paws, a few moments later, he motioned for Po to approach with the very same paw.

'Panda,' Shifu stated placing the forked end of his staff over the dragon warriors mouth, instantly silencing him as the giant panda attempted to speak, 'Tigress is the only daughter I have and thus is very precious to me, so if you ever break her heart then broken bones will be the least of your worries. Do I make myself clear?'

Anxiously wringing her paws without realizing it as her adoptive father more or less threatened her panda lover with death if he ever broke her heart, which Tigress already knew in her heart that Po would never do but was somewhat proud to see the red panda acting like a real father even though it was completely unnecessary. Gauging the dragon warriors devotion to his adopted daughter by the giant panda's reaction to the good natured fatherly threat, Shifu could tell just be the depth of love reflected in the bright jade green eyes that stared down in to his, that the feline meant the world to him and the he would never do anything that could possibly break her heart. Removing the forked end of his staff from where it sat upon the panda's mouth as he began to nod his head that he understood, a few minutes later, the Grand Master knew that she was in good paws and turning around said that he was going to mediate. Slipping her paw into the palm of his and intertwining their fingers, Tigress lightly nuzzled the side of her lover's neck before they walked in the direction of the training hall to tell there friends and fellow kung fu master, that they were officially dating now.

Looking up from the field of a thousand tongues of fiery death as one of the doors of the training hall was pulled open, expecting it to be there Master coming to check on them, the green tree snake could not help but smile at the sight her eyes fell upon. Instead of it being Master Shifu coming to check on them, it was Po and Tigress whom were holding paws which the serpent knew could only mean one thing; that the two warriors had final confessed their feelings for another and were now dating. Slithering over toward where the panda and tiger stood on the outskirts of the training course, while avoiding the periodical jet of flame that bleached up form the iron grid beneath her, Master Viper coiled her body in to a relaxed position in front of the two of them and smirked mischievously at the clearly overjoyed couple. Ever since Po had proved himself worthy of the title of Dragon Warrior following his defeat of Tai Lung three years earlier, the serpent had noticed a notable change in the felines behavior especially when she was around the giant panda but the changes had become more substantial since the group had returned from Gongmen City. Now when ever the snake had seen the two of the together, outside of training that is, Tigress was all smiles and giggles and overall appeared to be happier than the serpent had ever seen her before and on one occasion even caught the feline teasingly stroking the end of her tail in circular motions around the puff ball of Po's as they sat eating dinner one evening but stopped the moment that she noticed Viper staring at her out of the corner of her eyes.

'Viper, would you please wipe that smirk off you face, before I do it for you,' Tigress growled in a slightly annoyed tone as she glanced down at the partially coiled snake before the two of them, 'Honestly sometimes I swear, that you are no better than Mantis or Monkey, at least Crane has some measure of self control.'

'Sorry, I can not help it, you two just seem so perfectly suited for one another,' Viper commented, her smirk disappearing only to be replaced by a warm friendly smile instead, 'I have known just by your body language when ever you two have been around one another these past three years, that there were mutual feelings toward the other and after what we all experienced in Gongmen City, I knew it was only a matter of time until the two of you ultimately confessed your feelings for one another. I don't think I have ever seen Tigress so physical and emotional shattered as she was after Shen had blasted you out of his cannon factory Po, I mean she did not even put up a fight as one of the gorillas bound us in those chains shortly after that and usually she would have fought tooth and claw to prevent something like from happening.'

'Viper, I did not fight back because I know when I have been beaten,' Tigress said raising her free left paw and wiping away the tears that had begun to form in the corners of her eyes at the mentioning of that horrify moment in her life, even though it had been three months since it had happened, that moment was still as fresh in her memory as if it just recently occurred, 'Besides that I was to shocked to really register what was going on around us, I thought that I had just lost the love of my life at the time so you can not possibly even hope to begin to understand the gut wrenching pain that I was experiencing.'

'Sorry, Tigress, I did not mean to make you cry,' the serpent said apologetgetically, noticing that the feline was on the verge of crying, 'I was just merely commenting on how out of character it was for you to not put up any form of resistance.'

'That's okay, Viper, the pain of that memory will forever be a constant reminder, of just how close I really came to losing Po for good,' Tigress said sniffling slightly as she felt her panda gently warp his arms around her from the side, embracing her in a reassuring hug and filling her body with a comforting warmth like only he could, began to purr instinctively.

'Awe,' Viper swooned at the sight of the two of them lovingly embracing one another, like an old married couple, 'So what was it that finally brought the two of you together and how did Shifu react to learning that you are a couple now.'

Looking the direction of the door just as Viper had asked the now dating warriors this question, Mantis, Monkey and Crane were a gasp when their eyes fell upon the two partially silhouetted figures in to the column of bright sunlight that illuminated them from behind and saw that Tigress wore a warm smile on her muzzle as she had her head nestled against the side of Po's whom lovingly embraced the feline in his arms and a noticeable purring could be heard emitting from the feline. Since they had been taking a short break when they had seen this, the other three kung fu masters were standing on the outskirts of the training course and not in there usually training spots or else they could have been seriously injured by the unforgiving multi-staged training machine. Once they had recovered from the shock of seeing the panda and tiger sharing such an intimate embrace in the training hall door way, Mantis, Monkey and Crane rushed over and staring at them with reserved excitement in their eyes, eagerly awaiting for the couple to answered Viper's question.

Knowing that there was no way, there friends would resume their usual training routines unless they answered the serpents question, Po and Tigress shared a brief yet passionate kiss before separating but still holding paws and began to tell there friends about the events that had led to them confessing their feelings as well as how Shifu reacted to their relationship. Taken back that Shifu had actually accepted the two warriors relationship all be it with the usual fatherly threat in regards to Tigress and Mantis having a good laugh at the joke there master had pulled on the two of them, much to the couples chagrin but at least they would hopefully get back to training. Congratulating the happy panda and tiger about their relationship, a few moments later, there fellow masters and friends returned to there usual training equipment and resumed training. After a light kiss on the check Tigress released Po's paw and crouching down on all fours leapt toward the vacant Swinging clubs of instant obviation to begin training herself, leaving the panda to deal with the adversary dummy that still managed to kick his ass on a daily basis despite its simplicity of bob and wave.

Three hours had past before they knew it and stopping when Shifu hit the gong signaling a conclusion to the early morning training session, allowed them to get something to eat. Slipping her paw in to Po's as she stood at his side while the group walked in the barracks mess hall, a few moments later, Tigress extruded a combination of pure happiness and excitement which clearly showed just by the way the feline now carried herself instead of being as ridged as a board, like she was before, the tiger's posture was extremely relaxed and at several times even playfully teased the panda with her tail by stroking its end over the back of his legs or in circles around his round puffy tail. After savoring a satisfying bowl of the dragon warriors infamous secret ingredient noodle soup, which her lover made sure her portion was a little heavier on the noodles than everyone else's, twenty minutes later, the tiger used the opportunity to ask Shifu if the couple could be excused for a little bit so they could go tell Mr. Ping about their relationship. Contemplating her request for a few minutes, the red panda nodded his head approvingly just as long as promised to resume training with the others when they returned from the valley below. Emerging from the kitchen just as Shifu had finished saying this, having just finished doing the dishes, a quick glance passed between Po and Tigress before agreeing with there master by bowing their heads respectfully in his direction.

Walking around the table to where the master of tiger style sat, Po gentlemanly offered his right paw to help her to her foot paws which the feline graciously accepted and allowed the panda to pull her out of her seat. Intertwining their fingers as the couple walked out of the mess hall and headed toward the Jade Palaces front gate, a few moments later, pure happiness reflected in their eyes. With an encouraging smile at her panda lover as they began to descend the mountain of stairs in to the bright sunlit valley below, Tigress snuggled a little closer against his side, playfully sweeping the end of her tail over the back of his waist. Looking back over his left shoulder as the couple stood at the base of the stairs, a short time later, the dragon warrior could not believe that he had made it all the way down them without tripping over his own feet, like he had a tendency of doing and even tough he was slightly winded from the walk down raised his free paw victoriously; it had taken a little over three years for him to do it but he had finally beaten his most evil of adversaries, stairs, now if he could only do the same with the training dummy. After taking a short break, so that Po could catch his breath, the two warriors continued on there way toward Mr. Ping's restaurant to tell the noodle loving goose the wonderful news.

Briefly stopping outside of Dragon Warrior noodles and Tofu, a few minutes later, the couple saw that the restaurant was packed with customers as usual and the elderly goose was to busy rushing about from table to table delivering orders, to immediately notice the two love loran warriors. However the same could not be said about the patrons, whom all had a clear view of the sight that was before them and a hush fell upon the crowd as the dragon warrior and Master Tigress walked in to the establishment, holding paws and clearly in love with one another. Feeling the eyes of everyone seated around them boring into the two of them as they walked toward the kitchen pass through, the feline was grateful that her orange fur hid the faint blush that was creeping across her cheeks from the villagers stares but the white fur covered cheeks of the panda that stood beside her showed the slight embarrassment he felt over there constant gaze all to clear. Noticing that the restaurant had gone completely quiet for the crowd that filled it, Mr. Ping, now back in the kitchen, looked up from the pot of secret ingredient soup he was occasionally stirring to prevent the freshly pulled noodles from sticking together as they cooked in the flavorful broth and saw the two warriors standing before him holding paws. Completely forgetting about the pot of soup that he was watching on the stove, the noodle loving goose placed the wooden spoon, that he had been using to stir the noodles in the pot in the counter top and running out of the kitchen's side door, threw his arms around the two of them as best as he could.

'Son, do my eyes deceive me or are you and Master Tigress a couple now,' Mr. Ping asked with happy tears in his eyes as he released his hold upon the two warriors, a few moments later.

'No dad, you are not seeing things,' Po said smiling down at the happy goose and with a sideways glance at the tiger that stood beside him said in what the panda hoped was a casual reassuring tone, 'Tigress and I are officially dating now, Shifu even gave us his permission and everything but do you approve, dad.'

'What sort of question is that, son, of course I approve,' Mr. Ping squawked, taken back that his own son would think that he would not approve of there relationship, 'Why wouldn't I, I know how much this fine feline has truly meant to you for quite some time now. I am just glad that you finally found the courage, to go after what your heart truly desired apart from kung fu.'

'Dad, if this wasn't embarrassing enough, you just had to go and say something like that,' Po said his voice breaking as a deep shade of scarlet spread across his cheeks in embarrassment, 'You just live to embarrass me, don't you.'

'It's never my intention to embarrass you, son, its just one of those joys that comes along with being a father,' Mr. Ping said chuckle at his own little joke as Po's cheeks flushed even deeper so that his entire face now resembled a tomato, 'You will understand just exactly what I mean when you become a father yourself,' this time it was Tigress' turn to blush such a vivid shade of red that it actually showed through her orange fur and when the goose saw this he knew that neither one had even begun to contemplated marriage or the possibility of children just yet, after all the two warriors had just started dating but he was not getting any younger and he was looking forward to the idea of grand kids even if it meant the couple had to adopt. Seeing that they were becoming increasingly uncomfortable with all the patrons staring at them, Mr. Ping cleared his throat loud enough to get the crowds attention, raised his wings high and proclaimed for all present to hear in a crisp, clear voice, 'Everyone can I have your attention, please, thank you. Its official my boy and Master Tigress are now dating and in recognition of this wonderful occasion, everyone gets one free dragon warrior sized bean bun with the purchase of a bowl of my secret ingredient soup.'

A joyous cheer rent the air at the gooses' announcement and as it died down another chant began from the young children who were there with their families, encouraging the panda and tiger to kiss. Non-chalantly shrugging their shoulders at the children's playful antics, Po and Tigress softly smiled at one another before turning to face the other and intertwining their free paws together, leaned toward each other. Closing their eye as their lips met in a tender kiss, a few moments later, the two warriors felt like the crowded restaurant that surrounded them had melted away and they were the only two that existed in the entire world. Sighing dreamingly as they broke apart for air, an audible awe swept through the crowd as they watched the tiger snuggle against the panda's chest, purring happily; knowing that rumors and gossip of the two warriors relationship were bound to spread far and wide, Tigress wouldn't be surprised if all of China knew about it by the end of the week. Politely turning down his fathers offer when the goose asked the couple to stay for a bowl of soup, on the house, Po said that they needed to return to the Jade Palace to resume there training. Smiling understandingly at the happy couple that stood in front of him, Mr. Ping hugged each one individually before finally allowing them to return to there duties as the protectors of the valley.

Heading straight for the training hall upon there return to the Jade Palace, a short time later, the panda and tiger resumed there training as they had promised Shifu and even spent some of that training, sparing against one another. Even though they were now dating that did not mean Tigress eased up on Po, especially when they sparred, the feline fought against him with everything she had and he did the same with her, excluding his inner peace technique, but the end result was the same regardless of how well the giant panda blocked or evaded her attacks the tiger always emerged victorious. Helping the dragon warrior to his foot paws after yet another victory, this time by way of a round house kick to the side followed by sweeping his legs out from underneath him and toppling his unbalanced stance to the ground, the master of tiger style had to admit that even though his form was far from perfect, it was a vast improvement over when the panda had first arrived at the Jade Palace and his fighting skills were steadily improving with each passing day. Dusting himself off once back on his feet, Po thanked Tigress for helping him up before walking back to his spot in the sparing ring and got in to his fighting stance yet again ready to continue. Inwardly smiling at the level of dedication that her lover was showing toward training, for the very first time since joining the Furious Five in their studies, walked over to the far side of the circle and taking her usual stance taunted the panda to make the first move.

The sun sat low on he horizon, when Shifu finally hit the gong in the training hall signaling the end of training for the day and after bowing respectfully toward there master, all six students walked in the direction of the barracks to get cleaned up before dinner. Warmly smiling as he watched Po and Tigress playfully pushing one another upon the arm as the walked away from the training hall, the Grand Master felt the inner peace which had eluded him since returning from Gongmen City beginning to wash over him once more and with it knew that it was only a matter of time until he joined his sagely mentor in the heavens above but whom would he choose to succeed him as the Jade Palace's next Grand Master. The red panda would have to mediate on this later but for now decided that he would join his students for dinner since he did not eat many meals with them to begin with and had come to think of them as his very unique family because ever member of the Five had there own personality quirks and like every family, there were times when they all did not agree with one another but what really made them feel even more like a family was the way that Po had brought all of them closer together since his very first day at the Jade Palace; there was something special about the giant panda, he had the capability of bring out the best in those in around him and possessed a wise spirit for one so young. Gathering up the dirty dishes after a delicious meal of char-broiled fish and garlic Lo- mien noodles, the dragon warrior was pleased that everyone had enjoyed it even Viper, who rarely ate meat since she was born with unusually small fangs for a snake and tended to eat more vegetation fare than the rest of the group, Po neatly stacked there plates and cups and carried them in to the nearby kitchen. Tired from all the training they had done that day, each master bid the others good night before slowly filing off to there individual rooms. Five minutes later the only ones left in the mess hall were the panda and tiger, Shifu had left to mediate upon the next Grand Master of the Jade Palace in the Hall of Warriors a few moments earlier leaving the couple in the room alone, Tigress could have gone to bed long before this but she wanted to walk back to her room with the panda so the feline patiently waited until he was done cleaning the dishes. Blowing out the paper lanterns that illuminated the spacious room, a couple of minutes later, Po and Tigress walked in the direction of the student quarters and tenderly kissing in the hallway outside of their adjacent bedrooms, bid the other goodnight before reluctantly parting and withdrawing toward their individual rooms.

Later on the night, Tigress had tried falling asleep countless times but every time she was just about to, the emptiness she had felt as she watch Po being blasted out the wall of Shen's cannon factory and being powerless to do anything to prevent it would overwhelm her and so finally not being able to stand it any longer, sat up on her futon desperate to feel the warmth that he filled her body with. Standing up the master of tiger style walked over toward her bedroom door and quietly pulling them open, a few moments later, quickly glanced down either side of the hallway just to make sure the coast was clear and releasing her held breath, stepped out in to the hall. Closing the doors to her room behind her, the tiger sneaked across the hall and slipped inside her lover's room. It was the first time that she had ever been inside of the panda's room, but then again that was before the two of them were dating so the tiger was a little curious as to see how he had decorated it, since she was over there as it was. Looking around the room as her glowing eyes shifted from the small collection of wall hangings that graced one of its bamboo walls, to the minimal furnishings and finally coming to rest upon the lightly snoring mass that was the sleeping dragon warrior under the largest blanket that the valley weavers could weave to cover the equally as large futon that the palace staff had found for him to sleep on.

Returning her attention to the small collection of wall hangings the hung in the room, saw that most of them were of him and his adoptive father but there also was a group portrait of the warriors and there master for every Winter Festival over the past three years and in every single one noticed that she was always standing beside him with a barely noticeable smile on her lips. Smiling to herself as she noticed this and realizing that she had been in denial about her true feelings toward the panda for all those years, walked over toward his sleeping form and crouching down at his bedside, gently placing her right paw upon his shoulder began to feel her body begin to fill with a very pleasing warmth. Watching as Po rolled over in his sleep so that he was now facing her, a mischievous idea crossed the tigers mind, if just the simple act of gently touching him with her paw filled her very being with such a pleasing warmth than how much more warmth would wash over her if she actually crawled under the sheets with him. Standing up Tigress with slightly trembling fingers undid the cloth buttons of her vest and shimmied out of her slacks, neatly folding her clothes and placing them next to the futon, a few moments later, the feline pulled back the top sheet and joined her lover in his bed. Tucking her head underneath his chin as the fluffy fur of his chest rubbed against her own silken coat, the feline purred softly as she felt Po warp his arms around her scantly clothed torso pulling her in to a gentle loving embrace. Snuggling even closer in response to his actions, a few moments later, Tigress buried her muzzle in to the side of Po's neck and closing her eyes got acquainted with the panda's musk, finally managed to fall in to a deep restful sleep at long last. Stopping by the student quarters before going to bed himself, a hour later, Shifu walked right past the doors of his other students rooms and only stopping in front of the dragon warriors room, peaked inside of it to find the panda and tiger sound asleep in their lovers embrace both lightly snoring with happy smiles on gracing their faces. Quietly closing the doors and walking in the direction of his own room, the red panda had a feeling that he would find his daughter in the giant panda's room just by the strength of which she had defended their relationship earlier and suspected that it would not be the last time, he would find her in there either.

**Well there you have it, news of our two warriors relationship is out. What will the next chapter hold for them and the Valley of Peace, well you are going just to have to wait to find out. Also I might be rasing the rating of this stroy, since things are heating between Po and Tigress but I haven't made up my just mind yet. Please R&R **


	3. The greatest Gift of all

**Like the rising of the sun each day the story continues, so for all my faithful followers out there here is the next chapter. Six moths have passed since the end of the last chapter and our two warriors yet again have gotten themselves in to a mess, read to find out exactly what it is. I shall be introducing a new character in this chapter, they might be the next one as well but haven't decided yet, she in an Arctic fox named Ms. Ming Yue. As always I welcome all opinions, Plz R&R. **

**Disclaimer; I don't own KFP or any of its characters. **

**Chapter Three**

***** The Greatest Gift of All*** **

Po and Tigress had been dating for six months now and suddenly found their relationship heading in a very different direction than either had anticipated it would so soon but then given the sheer amount of time that they spent together both during the day and the night via their forbidden rendezvous, it was only a matter of time until something like this would happen as the couple were now proud parents-to-be. Fortunately the two warriors had done a good job of keeping the felines pregnancy just between the two of them, at least that was the case until early one morning a little over a week and a half week ago.

_*A week and a half earlier*_

The couple was resting peacefully, cuddled under the thick blankets of Po's futon until the tiger felt her stomach begin to twist it self in knots. Reluctantly slipping out of her lovers gentle hold upon her, the feline crawled out from under the warm sheets and opening the doors as quietly as possible, crept down the hallway toward the student barracks latrine. No longer sensing the warmth of Tigress' body next to his, the giant panda threw back the sheets completely and no seeing the feline anywhere in the room once his eyes had adjusted to the dark, figured that she must have returned to her own room so that they would not be caught. However the panda immediately tossed that theory aside, since he hadn't felt his kiss him on the cheek or forehead like she usually did ever morning before the two parted ways. Leaving only one possible explanation for her not being in bed with him, Po stood up and quietly slipping out of his room, headed straight for the barracks latrine.

Softly pushing the latrine door open, a few moments later, the dragon warrior saw that Tigress held on to the rounded edge of one of the two sinks with both her paws for support as she vomited. Walking over toward the feline, Po stood beside her and began to soothingly stroke his right paw over her back. Feeling the gentle touch of her lovers paw as it swept over her silken fur, Tigress raised her head slightly from its lowered position and briefly flashed the panda weak yet happy smile before leaning forward once more and vomiting again. Inauspiciously for the expecting inter-species couple, Shifu had walked in to the latrine, just at that precise moment and had caught the two of them. Rendered speechless by the sight that he had stumbled in on, the red panda knew that for his adopted daughter to be leaning over the sink like she was it could mean only one thing, since the tiger never threw up not even when sickness would strike and leave her bedridden, she was pregnant. On the outside the adoptive father might have fallen silent but on the inside he was a raging fireball of anger and emotions, the Grand Master knew all about their nightly rendezvous but he never thought they would possibly lead to this.

At first Shifu blamed the dragon warrior for the tigers current condition but was Po entirely to blame, he knew that the feline had a tendency of sneaking in to the panda's room on a nightly basis so that they could cuddle and truth be told Tigress had been acting unusually strange ever since he and Master's Mantis, Monkey, Crane and Viper had returned to the Jade Place from a week-long mission in the west of China to negotiate a peace between two bickering villages over where the border of each was. Outside of training the two had become inseparable, if that was somehow even possible since they were always together to start with but there was it was slightly different from before and on more than one occasion the tiger had asked if she could be excused during training itself because she was feeling slightly under the weather that day. Now that Shifu had really thought about it, Po was not entirely to blame for Tigress' state but that did not make what the two of them had obviously decided to do, while they had the Palace all to themselves any easier to accept. Seeing that the bout of morning sickness had past, since the feline was wiping the back of one of her paws over her mouth to clean it and that at any moment the couple would spot him when they turned around, the Grand Master tuned and was just about to leave but stopped when the concerned voice of his adopted daughter, fearfully called out him.

'Baba, I'm sorry,' Tigress said, having spotted the red panda out of the corner of her eye as she wiped the residual threw up from her muzzle, 'You have to believe me, we never meant this to happen, that was never our intent. All we wanted was some private time to ourselves so when you and the rest left us to watch over the Valley and Palace on that last mission. We made the most of it that we could, since we knew that it might be awhile until it was just the two of us again.'

'It's okay, Tigress, I know that the rooms here are not exactly designed for privacy of any kind, the only room that remotely dose is mine but even then its limited,' Shifu commented in a matter of fact tone as he kept his back turned to the couple, 'And even though I would love nothing more than to banish Po for the role he played in this, I also know that if I did, that you would be quick to follow him regardless even if I had forbidden it. Am I correct in my assumption, my daughter?'

'That's correct, Father,' Tigress answered back, proudly standing next to her lover and intertwining her left paw with his right, 'A tiger will never abandon their mate and since Po and myself have been intimately involved that makes the two of us mates, technically speaking that is.'

'I figured you would say something like that, Tigress, and I know better than to come between a tiger, especially one that's pregnant, and their mate,' Shifu said, sighing lightly while also knowing that it truly had not been their plan to end up with child, just by the underlying honesty that was present in the felines voice, 'But under no circumstance is any grand child of mine going to be born out-of-wedlock, the two of you must be married before he or she is born. When the two of you have decided on a date, please tell me, until then just keep this little secret between us.'

'As you wish, Master,' the couple said in unison, bowing slightly at Shifu as he walked out of the latrine.

Still holding paws the panda and tiger walked in the direction of the Palace bath house, a few moments later, since both were too excited to go back to sleep and even if they had, the morning gong was roughly a little over two hours from sounding in the first place; so what was the point of going back to bed anyway. On the way to the Palace bath house the couple made a brief stop at Po's quarters to each pick up a change of clothing and a few towels, since the feline had moved over half the belongings from her closet in to his little by little ever since the day after the two legendary warriors had started their relationship. Hanging the "in use" sign over handles of one of the bath house's double doors, ten minutes later, the panda and tiger stripped out of their under garments put their clothing in two of the lien lined reed baskets that sat in the divided wall unit before sliding open the doors to the bathing area and stepping inside the humid room beyond. After taking turns lathering one another bodies up first with soap and then with shampoo and rinsing off with a bucket of temperate water in between the two layers, the couple eased in to the naturally feed hot spring bath and nestling together at one end, allowed the water to ease all their stress' away. This was not the first time they had done this by any means, for the entire week that they had the Palace just to themselves it had become a daily routine for the couple to bathe together every chance they got and took especially lengthy soaks every night before they went to bed but they had been unable to enjoy one another's company like this since then and at least for a little while anyways, it felt just like they had the Palace all to themselves again even thought they really didn't. Reluctantly climbing out of the hot spring bath when there was half an hour before the morning gong was to sound, Po and Tigress dried their damp fur with towels and got dressed, returning to the hallway outside of the student quarters, with just minutes to spare before the morning gong sounded.

_*Back to the present* _

Tonight was the Valley of Peace's annual Winter Festival and all the residents of the Jade Palace, Shifu included, were busy getting ready to look their best before attending the festivities' in the valley below. Since it was a special occasion for the citizens of the Valley and all of its surrounding villages, the red panda told had them at breakfast earlier that morning, they had the day off to get ready and Tigress did just that. The feline had started her off day by seeing Po off after he was finished washing the dishes from breakfast because he wanted to go help his dad prepare for the festival for a bit since he said I wouldn't take him that long to get changed when he got back later on that afternoon. Now the master of tiger style, stood in front of the full length mirror in a corner of her room dressed in a beautiful silk ch'ang-p'ao of jade green embroidered with a pattern of tiger lily's and intertwining vines in gold thread covering the long sleeveless robe from top to bottom, that hugged all the curves of feminine body perfectly and had a slit up one side from the bottom hem to about a third of the way up her thighs just above her knee to making waking in it easier; the dress had been a gift from Viper five years before and had sat forgotten in its box in the back of her closet until recently when the feline had come across it again while deciding what articles to move across the hall that day.

When she had first found it again, a few days earlier, the tiger coughed slightly as she blew the thick layer of dust that covered its lid and could not resist the urge to smile as she gently lifted it out of its box. After taking it out in the bright day light of her bedroom and quickly checking to make sure no one was in the hallway outside, Tigress striped out of her training gear and trying the elegant long robe on was pleasantly surprised to discover that it still fit her as perfectly as it did the day that the green tree snake had first given it to her, it was just a little to fancy as the everyday wear for a kung fu warrior but for special occasions such as a festival it was ideal. That was the reason she had chosen to wear it tonight well that plus she was curious at how her mate would react, since most of the time he only ever saw her wearing the red vest and black slacks that she used for training gear as well as everyday cloths. Feeling a pair of strong yet gentle arms embrace her from behind, a few moments later, the feline purred and leaned into her panda's chest as the warmth of his body enveloped her.

'Kitten, you look lovely,' Po said, interlocking the fingers of both his paws as they came to rest upon the tigers abdomen, 'I don't knew if it's the radiant glow of the pregnancy or just the colour of that dress you're wearing but it really makes those beautiful eyes of yours stand out even more than usual.'

'You really think so, dumpling,' Tigress said tentatively, looking her reflection up and down and noticing that the amber of her eyes seemed to glow more brightly than the yellow that surrounded them, for the first time herself, 'I guess your right about the colour, it does seem to bring out my eyes more but I'm not entirely sure about the dress itself. Don't you think, it's a little on the short side though?'

'It's prefect, so would you please stop fusing with it,' Po said, gently placing his head on the felines shoulder, 'Beside's if anyone has anything negative to say about it than they'll have to deal with me, so have you done any thinking about our wedding date recently.'

'Not really,' Tigress answered honestly placing her paws on top of his. Ever since Shifu had caught the two of them in the barracks latrine that morning the feline had done very little thinking about their wedding date since according to the specialist that they had secretly gone to see in the next valley over, when the pregnancy symptoms began three weeks earlier had told the expecting couple that every pregnancy is different and since it was their first, there was really no way to know when or if the pregnancy would physically show nor if she did, if it would be at all that noticeable since the master of tiger style was in such great shape, 'Why, do you have a date that you would like our wedding to be on, darling?'

'As a matter of fact I do, my lovely kitten but I'm not entirely sure if you will like it as much as I do,' Po said, a slightly worried note clearly present in his voice but he decided to press on none the less, 'I know that it's sort of cliché but I really would like it, if we could have our wedding on the twentieth of March, you know on the first day of Spring.'

'The first day of Spring, huh,' Tigress said, contemplating the idea thoughtfully for a few minutes before a warm smile crept across her muzzle, 'I absolutely love it, dumpling, we could even have the ceremony outside in the Jade Palace courtyard, I don't think my father would mind.'

'So it's settled, my love, the date of our wedding with be the first day of Spring, agreed,' Po asked, feeling a smile beginning to form on his own face as well.

'Sounds like a plan to me, my sweet dumpling,' Tigress said, leaning her head against the panda's, lightly rubbing her cheek over his, 'So I guess that means when can finally tell the rest of the five and your dad about our little one as well.'

'Don't you mean little ones, Ms. Ming Yue said that it was possible you may give birth to two or even three cubs,' Po said remembering this fact vividly because when he had heard it for the first time himself the giant panda had fainted, right there in the examination room that the pure white furred vixen had put the two of them in.

'I have not forgotten about that little detail, dear, it's just that I really don't want to think about that now however I just thought of something else,' Tigress growled her smile growing in to a mischievous grin as a completely different though crossed the felines mind at that very moment, 'Since we have decided on a wedding date, I guess that would technically make us engaged which means we could probably room together from now on,if we really wanted to do so.'

'I don't know, kitten, some how I don't think Shifu would be as open to that suggestion as you or I would,' Po said, chuckling at the tiger's suggestion, 'So are you ready to go, everyone is waiting for us at the palace gates.'

'Almost, I just have a few finishing touches to complete my outfit,' Tigress said lightly stroking her right paw over her bare left wrist, where the coiling dragon bracelet that Po had given to her as a courting gift usually rested, but it was still on the top of her dresser from when the feline had taken it off earlier to get herself ready for the festival.

Releasing his hold from around Tigress' waist, the feline gently kissed the panda on the cheek before walking over toward her dresser to finishing getting ready. Slipping the finely crafted silver coiling dragon bracelet around her left wrist, the tiger delicately adjusted the dragon's head so that the pearl clasp between its jaws were centered with her wrist and picking up the bottle of perfume that also sat a top her dresser give its pump a couple of light squeezes, sprayed some of its tiger lily fragrance on to her fur before setting the small lily shaped bottle back down. Just like the bracelet that she rarely took off except to bathe, this perfume had been yet another of her panda's courting gifts as was the new brush and comb set he had bought for her the week before. Tigress had no idea how Po knew that tiger lilies were her favourite flowers, perhaps Viper had told him since she was the only one the feline had ever trusted this information to but regardless of how he had found out, it was they thought that counted and every little act of kindness that he showered her with or purposefully courting gift he bought only further served to endear the panda in the depths of the tigers heart. Looking back at the dragon warrior as he admired his reflection in the mirror, saw that the dragon warrior was dressed in a pair of black silk shorts with a red serpentine dragon coiling up one of its legs. Walking back over toward Po, a few moments later, Tigress intertwined their paws, blew out the lantern and the expecting couple left her bedroom.

'Its about time you two showed up, we were just about to head down to the village without you,' Shifu said, in a slightly annoyed tone as he massaged his temple with his free paw, a few minutes later, as Po and Tigress joined the rest of the five at the palace gate, 'So is everyone ready to go?'

'Yes, Master,' the six students responded simultaneously.

'Good, now before we head down to the village, there is something that I would like to tell all of you,' Shifu said, lowering his raised paw to his side and slowly casting his eyes over the students continued, 'I know that it's not very often I give you time off, outside of festivals but that does not mean you can run wild. I want you to have a good time while behaving in a respectful way as one would expect of kung fu masters . So if I hear any complaints about your behavior from the villagers during the festival, then those responsible will be severely punished. Now let's getting going shall we.'

'Baba, wait,' Tigress said, feeling slightly nervous about telling her adoptive father that she and Po had finally decided on a wedding date, in front of a group that was completely in the dark about why she had been acting out of sorts recently, 'Po and I talked it over and have finally picked out a date we both believe is appropriate, its March twentieth.'

'The first day of Spring, an excellent chose and very fitting,' Shifu commented contemplating the couple's date of choose as he lightly stroked his bread, 'We could even hold the ceremony in the Jade Palace court yard, so that way everyone in the valley could attend the momentous occasion.'

'Momentous occasion, what are you taking about, Master,' Viper asked, shifting her gaze back and forth between the couple and there Master.

'Yeah, there appears to be something going on here, that you're not telling us,' Crane said in a matter of fact tone as the avian adjusted his reed-work hat upon his head, 'This momentous occasion, what ever it is, it would not happen to have anything to do with the reason Tigress has been acting so unusual lately, would it.'

'Yes, it does,' Shifu said, meeting the birds inquisitive gaze with his eyes briefly before shifting it to the expecting tiger and with the subtle nod of his head told the couple the jig was up.

'It was good while it lasted, kitten, but I guess that we couldn't keep it a secret forever they would have figured it out once you began to show anyway,' Po said sighing lightly as he shrugged his shoulders, relieved that they had been found out, 'Do you want to tell them or should I?'

'Lets tell them together, my sweet dumpling,' Tigress said, smiling warmly at her mate before turning to face the couples friends, 'I'll start, the momentous occasion that Shifu is referring to is our wedding.'

'Oh my god, Tigress, congratulations,' Viper squealed excitedly, slithering over toward the tiger and coiling around the felines waist in her version of a hug. The moment she did this however, the tree snakes natural instincts picked up the presence of two faint heart beats that did not belong to either herself or the tiger she was hugging, 'Tigress, oh my gosh your pregnant, did you know that.'

'Way to steal my thunder, Viper, that was supposed to be my line,' Po said in a tone that clearly showed, he was annoyed that the serpent had beat him to the punch, 'Yeah so as Viper just said Tigress is pregnant, that's the reason she has been acting so out of character lately.'

'Well that certainly explains a lot,' Monkey said happy for the expecting couple, warmly smiling at his friends and fellow masters, 'Especially her behavior since we returned from that border dispute in the Valley of Swirling Mist.'

'Yeah, I don't think I have ever seen you two spent so much time together, when we weren't training the pair of you always sneak off somewhere more private and do god knows what,' Mantis snickered rubbing his pincers over one another while an evil grin spread across his face, 'I can still remember the chewing out Shifu gave you two when, he caught you guys making out in the pantry and from what I managed to briefly overhear, you two were in a rather compromising position.'

'I would hardly call it a compromising position, both of us were still fully clothed so it's not as if we were naked,' Tigress growled shooting a death glare at the green insect that sat upon Monkey's shoulder, silencing the bug instantly and making the grin disappear from his face, 'I mean ok, it might have seemed suggestive since I did have my legs wrapped around his waist but that was only because he had my back pressed against one of the pantry's cabinets, besides we do not or should not even have to explain our actions to anyone because frankly as far as I'm concerned the details of our personal life are none of your business.

'Mantis, its unwise to agitate any tiger in general but add the hormones of a pregnancy and you are either very foolish or asking for a death wish,' Viper hissed in a warning tone, as she turned her head to shoot her own death glare at the insect in question before the serpent returned her gaze back to the pregnant tiger she continued to hug, 'So how long have two been keeping this little secret from us, your trusted and valued friends?'

'About three weeks,' Po said giving his feline mates paw, a gentle reassuring squeeze, 'Tigress started to show the first signs of a possible pregnancy the day after you guys got back, it was not until a few days after that once we sat down with the feline specialist in the next valley over and told her what was going on, that she confirmed Tigress was indeed with child. After we returned to the Jade Palace that night, I don't think either one of us even slept a single wink. So when ever we have a moment to ourselves, we find a nice quiet spot and have a little innocent fun.'

'Whoa, let me get this straight, you have known about this for three weeks and you are just telling us about this now,' Mantis said leaping in to the air before landing back on Monkey's shoulder, 'What's the deal with all the secrecy, I thought that we were suppose to be your friends, so how could you keep something as big as this from us?'

'To be honest we did not knew how you would react to the news that I was pregnant because it would mean all of you knowing that me and Po suddenly had an intimate relationship and truthfully I liked that it was just between us, since we have had to deal with your incisive teasing, Mantis, ever since we started dating,' Tigress said the amber of her eyes, narrow slits as they continued to stare daggers at Mantis not liking the tone in his voice yet at the same time feeling like a great weight had been lifted off her shoulders now that their friends knew all about her pregnancy, leaving only Mr. Ping left to tell, 'Then one morning as my beloved soothed me while I experienced a bout of morning sickness, Shifu stumbled upon the two of us in the barracks latrine both scantily clothed and he could tell just by one look at my condition that I was pregnant. Reluctantly accepting the new intimacy of our relationship, he asked us to keep our pregnancy a secret from you guys until Po and I had decided on a wedding date and now that we have, we just have Mr. Ping left.'

'That's sure to make his day, possibly even his year,' Crane said ruffling his wings nonchalantly, 'I know that he has hinted at the idea of grand children between you two, ever since you started dating. So this is sure to be one Winter Festival that he will never forget, I don't think that I ever will.'

'Shifu, before we head in to the valley, there is one other thing that we would like to ask your permission for,' Po asked swallowing hard, anxious over what he was about to ask Shifu permission to do, 'Tigress and I were thinking that since we have finally settled on a wedding date like you had asked from us and that there would be no harm in it given her pregnancy, as a matter a fact it would probably bring us and our growing family even closer together, that maybe we could room together from now on.'

'I don't see why not, she spends most of her nights with you regardless of Palace rules,' Shifu said tightening the hold on his peach tree staff briefly before loosening it once more as he watched the two warriors smile from ear to ear, 'You two will make fine parents, I have no doubt about that and Mantis if you value your life in any way, than you will learn to give them all the space they ask for. Actually I had better make that for all of you, unless they ask for it otherwise, I please ask that give Po and Tigress all the personal and private space they need. Now shall we go?'

Nodding agreeably with there master, the other four kung fu warriors understood why there friends had kept the pregnancy a secret from them and respected the fact that now that Po and Tigress were with child it meant they would have to give the expecting parents a bit more personal and private space. Still coiled around Tigress' waist Viper hugged the tiger even more gently than she had the first time. The master of tiger style briefly hugged the serpent back before finally allowing the snake to slither her way back toward her spot next to Crane. After congratulating the expecting couple and giving them there best wishes, the six warriors and there master left the Jade Palace and began to walk down the mountain of stairs. Looking around the village as the group stood at the bottom of the stairs, a short time later, the panda and tiger knew that this year's Winter Festival was certainly one they would never forget as well. The village streets were decorated with lanterns casting a soft yellow glow over the homes and businesses and various stalls lined either side of the main street, their owners selling there wares to the crowd.

Coming to a stop outside of Mr. Ping's shop, a few moments later, Po and Tigress saw that it was packed with even more costumers than usual no doubt because the noodle loving goose was having a special offer to tie in with the festival. Telling the rest of the group that they would met up with them later, the panda and tiger pushed their way through the crowd as politely as possible until they reached the counter. Looking up from the pot of soup that he was stirring, the goose smiled when he saw that his two favourite warriors in all of China stood on the other side of the pass through.

'I would love to stop and chat you two but as you can see, I very busy right now,' Mr. Ping said turning his attention back to the pot on the stove in front of him.

'This will only take a few minutes, dad,' Po said smiling widely as he cast a sideways glance at the lovely feline that stood beside him, 'We just wanted to tell you, that Tigress and I are engaged now but that's not all, she's pregnant as well.'

'Pregnant,' repeated the goose as the wooden spoon he held, slipped out of his pin feathers and landed with a muted thud upon the kitchen floor. Bending down to pick up the fallen utensil, threw it in to the sink and collecting another which he than set down on the counter top before looking back at the couple with moist eyes, 'As in with child, Tigress, you have just made this old goose very happy, very happy indeed. And you two are getting married as well, ah what wonderful news, this truly has been the best Winter Festival I have ever had. So when is the wedding going to be?'

'The twentieth of March, it's going to be held in the court yard of the Jade Palace so everyone from the valley can attend,' Tigress said casting a side ways glance of her own in the giant panda's direction while the feline nestled a little closer to his side, 'If you would like we can help you out, by delivering the orders to there tables for a little bit.'

'Naw that's okay, go and enjoy the festival you two,' Mr. Ping insisted motioning for them to enjoy the festivities with both wings, 'I will be just fine.'

'Are you sure, dad, I mean you look pretty busy,' Po said casting his bright eyes over the crowded restaurant before returning them to rest upon the goose, 'We wouldn't might waiting on tables while you do all the cooking its too much, even for you to handle all on your own tonight, come on please allow us to help it's what we do.'

'Your right, son, I am getting to old for this,' Mr. Ping said knowing that there was no point in trying to convince Po otherwise and truthfully he could use the help but was just to ashamed to admit it as he did not want to ruin the couples evening, 'I suppose that you two can help me out for a little while but there is no way that I am going to allow you to spend the entire festival assisting me.'

'Thank you, Mr. Ping,' Tigress said bowing her head slightly, happy to aid the goose in any way that she could.

'No, Tigress, thank you for making all of my son's dreams come true,' Mr. Ping said picking the spoon back up and returning to his soup, just as Po's cheeks flushed a bright red in embarrassment.

Tenderly licking her mate upon the cheek to get his attention, Tigress planted a gentle kiss on the panda's lips cause the patrons of the restaurant to giggle and swoon at the sight. Lightly pressing their foreheads together as the couple broke apart, a few moments later, the two warriors closed their eyes and listened as their heart beat in prefect harmony with that of the other. After spending two hours helping Mr. Ping at his restaurant, the crowd had thinned out some and the goose insisted that they go enjoy some of the festivities the annual celebration had to offer. Taking the goose's advice the panda and tiger went to leave the shop but not before Mr. Ping threw his wings around both of them individually in a hug, which was even more gentle in Tigress' case since she was carrying his unborn grandchildren. Hugging the noodle loving goose back, the couple promised to make regular visits from then on before leaving to enjoy the festival and possibly met up with the rest of the there friends eventually. Purring softly as they cuddled under the thick blankets of Po's futon, back at the Jade Palace later on that evening, the fur of their pelts intertwining as their barely clothed bodies rubbed against one another, the couple had never been happier and had never enjoyed all the sights and sounds of a Winter Festival as much as they had that year.

**Well there you have it, I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. Now for those of you who haven't figured it out yet, my OC, Ms. Ming Yue is the specialist Po and Tigress went to visit, she is an Arctic Fox whom specializes in feline pregnancy and over all general health. I am working on a few other stories beside this one, so it might be a little while before I post the next chapter of this one but it will be worth the wait. Plz R&R **


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